Handstop and sling swivel accessory for sporting guns

ABSTRACT

A gun accessory for a gun having a barrel mounted on a stock comprises a handstop assembly in a sling swivel assembly which are mounted on a common base at spaced longitudinal locations in respect to the gun barrel. The base includes a dovetailed end which is engaged in a receiving groove of a rail member carried at the base of the forward stock of the gun. The handstop assembly includes a threaded receiving member which forms part of the mounting means and a bolt is threadably engaged into the receiving member and has a head portion extending outwardly from the gun stock. A hand applicating element has a tubular part which is engaged over the bolt head and it is adjustable inwardly and outwardly, i.e., axially in respect to the bolt and may be anchored in a selected position so as to be either close to the gun stock or to extend further outwardly therefrom. The sling swivel includes a forked member which is engaged on a receiving portion of the mounting base and which receives a swivel eyelet member having a central pivot support with laterally extending portions which engage into an open ended recess formed between the forked legs of the receiving member.

Unite States Patent [191 Wild et al.

[ 1 Jan. 21, 1975 HANDSTOP AND SLING SWIVEL ACCESSORY FOR SPORTING GUNS[75] Inventors: Hermann Wild, Ulm/Donau; Rolf-Dieter Klossika,

Neu-Ulm/Donau, both of Germany [73] Assignee: J. G. Anschultz GmbH,Donau,

Germany 221 Filed: July 24,1973

21 Appl. No.: 382,126

[30] Foreign Application Priority Data July 31, 1972 Germany 7228299[52] U.S. Cl. 42/85 [51] Int. Cl. F41c 23/02 [58] Field of Search 42/85[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,913,841 6/1933 Lowe 42/852,112,577 3/1938 Roberts 42/85 2,116,618 5/1938 Crockett r 42/852,857,701 10/1958 Morrison 42/85 2,933,843 4/1960 McFeeter 42/853,061,965 11/1962 Lewis 42/85 Primary Examiner-Benjamin A. BorcheltAssistant ExaminerC. T. Jordan Attorney, Agent, or Firm-McGlew andTuttle [57] ABSTRACT A gun accessory for a gun having a barrel mountedon a stock comprises a handstop assembly in a sling swivel assemblywhich are mounted on a common base at spaced longitudinal locations inrespect to the gun barrel. The base includes a dovetailed end which isengaged in a receiving groove of a rail member carried at the base ofthe forward stock of the gun. The handstop assembly includes a threadedreceiving member which forms part of the mounting means and a bolt isthreadably engaged into the receiving member and has a head portionextending outwardly from the gun stock. A hand applicating element has atubular part which is engaged over the bolt head and it is adjustableinwardly and outwardly, i.e., axially in respect to the bolt and may beanchored in a selected position so as to be either close to the gunstock or to extend further outwardly therefrom. The sling swivelincludes a forked member which is engaged on a receiving portion of themounting base and which receives a swivel eyelet member having a centralpivot support with laterally extending portions which engage into anopen ended recess formed between the forked legs of the receivingmember.

8 Claims, 7 Drawing Figures YPATENTEWM 4 I 3.861.070

' SHEET10F4 Fig. 1

PATENTED 3.861.070

sum 2 OF, "4

PATENTEBJANZ] ms Fig. 7 x

HANDSTOP AND SLING SWIVEL ACCESSORY FOR SPORTING GUNS BACKGROUND OF THEINVENTION 1. Field of the Invention This invention relates in general tothe construction of guns and in particular, to a new and useful gunaccessory which comprises a handstop assembly and a sling swivelassembly which are adapted to be mounted on the forward stock of a gunin spaced longitudinal relationship.

2. Description of the Prior Art The present invention deals particularlywith the con struction of a handstop and sling swivel assembly for usewith sporting guns. A handstop is an auxiliary device for sporting gunswhich is used when firing in the prone position and it is adapted to actas a countersupport for the hand holding of the front stock of the gun.The hand engages the front stock between the thumb and the index fingeragainst the hand contact element of the handstop. The hand thus finds afirm holding position in the direction of the fire so that the guncannot slip forwardly.

In accordance with the rules for sporting shooting which are presentlyin force and stops are only permitted at free shoots. No handstop may beused in standard shoots. A sling is permitted for use in both types ofshoots for shooting in the prone position and this sling is fixed by asling swivel to the front stock, for example, and is usually loopedaround the left upper arm. A sling may touch and press against the backof the hand which grips around the front of the stock and the marksmanmay, by a slight tilting of the hand, fixthe sling tension to desiredlimits. In some instances, the front stock is referred to the fore endof the stock.

The sling swivel and the handstop have usually been made as separateparts independent from one another and they are fixed individually tothe front stock in a releasable manner or the two parts are combinedtogether to form a unit. In the two-part construction it is possible touse the sling swivel both for the standard shot gun and also for a freeshot gun. A single part construction is only permissible for a free shotgun. Marksmen shooting with both types of gun when using the single parttype, require an additional sling swivel for the standard shot gun.

The known handstops are mounted on the stock so as to be movablelongitudinally but they can be adapted to meet other requirements forsuch devices only with difficulty or not at all. Thus, for instance, itis often desirable to vary the size and shape of the hand applicationelement of the handstop, and also to vary the amount at which itprojects outwardly from the underside of the front stock. This isunderstandable since the hands of different marksmen are of differentsizes and an individual marksman will sometimes shoot with a glove overhis hand.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In accordance with the invention, there isprovided a handstop and sling swivel which are adapted to be mounted atspaced longitudinal locations on the front stock and which includes amounting for the hand application element such that it can be easilyadjusted inwardly and outwardly in respect to the stock and also so thathand application elements of various sizes may be employed. In addition,the device may also be readily adapted so that the construction willonly provide a sling swivel so that the gun may be readily adapted foruse in all types of sporting shooting.

In the preferred form of the invention, the mounting means comprises acombined base with the receiving members at respective ends thereof forthe handstop and the sling swivel. The base is adapted to be engaged ina groove of a rail formation of the gun stock. The handstop assemblyincludes an internally threaded receiving sleeve for a threaded boltwhich is engaged therein and which includes a head portion over whichhand application elements of various constructions may be engaged. Thebolt for receiving the hand application element may be threadablyadjusted in respect to its receiving element on the mounting base andthe hand application element itself may be adjusted inwardly andoutwardly over the head of the receiving bolt so as to adjust itsposition of projection in respect to the stock underside. Theconstruction is such that hand application elements of various sizes maybe employed and, in addition, they may be adjustably moved in respect tothe receiving bolt inwardly and outwardly and locked in an adjustedposition. While the hand application element is preferably affixed tothe clamping screw head of the handstop, it can of course be secured toany other element of the base part.

Thus the invention makes it possible to interchange the hand applicationelement so that it can be easily adapted to the individual requirementsof the user of the gun. The adjustability of the spacing of the handapplication element from the underside of the stock makes it possible totake into consideration different hand sizes and also to facilitateconvenience shooting with or without a shooting glove or a gauntlet.During the prone position shooting, the sling is stretched and the gunis therefore pressed firmly against the marksmans body, it touches thehand application element of the handstop at its end face and is turnedaround it. By adjusting the handstop application element perpendicularlyto the stock therefore, the sling tension can be very sensitivelycontrolled and the force of the pressure of the sling on the handholding the fore end of the stock can be varied.

The mounting means for the handstop assembly and the swivel assembly issuch that it may be inserted into the receiving rail of the gun stock inan opposite direction so that the sling swivel will lay foremost. Inaddition, if desired, the hand application element can be removed. Whenshooting without a handstop and with only a sling, the sling will layagainst the narrow edge of the hand between the thumb and the indexfinger. Since this part of the hand is curved slightly inwardly, it isadvantageous and agreeable for the marksman if the sling has also thesame curvature. For this reason the sling swivel of the invention isadvantageously made of a curved configuration. This curvature also hasthe advantage that when using the device as a handstop the sling adaptsitself flexibly better against the hand application element.

Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to provide a gun accessorywhich comprises a handstop assembly and a sling swivel assembly withmeans for mounting them in spaced relationship on the fore stock of agun, and wherein the handstop assembly includes a receiving member whichprojects outwardly from the mounting and which is engaged by a handapplication element which may be adjustably moved inwardly and outwardlythereof and which includes means for clamping the hand applicationelement in an adjusted position.

A further object of the invention is to provide a gun accessory whichcomprises a handstop and sling swivel with mounting means for mountingthem in longitudinally spaced relationship with either one extendingforwardly and with a handstop assembly which includes a hand applicationelement which may be either removed or replaced.

A further object of the invention is to provide a gun accessory which issimple in design, rugged in construction and economical to manufacture.

For an understanding of the principles of the invention references havebeen made to typical embodiments thereof as illustrated in theaccompanying drawmgs.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a partial elevational and partial sectional view of theforward end of a gun having an accessory thereon constructed inaccordance with the invention;

FIG. 2 is a side elevational view of the gun shown in FIG. 1 but withthe accessory mounted in a reverse position;

FIG. 3 is a section taken on the line III-III of FIG.

FIG. 4 is a top plan view of the sling swivel mount;

FIG. 5 is a partial sectional view of the handstop assembly shown inFIG. 1; and

FIGS. 6 and 7 are views similar to FIG. 5 of alternate embodiments ofthe invention.

GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring to thedrawings in particular, the invention embodied therein as indicated inFIGS. 1-5 comprises a gun accessory for a gun having a barrel 1 and astock 2 with an underside having a groove or recess which is defined bya rail 3.

In accordance with the invention, the rail 3 has an opening at one end,for example, the aft end for receiving mounting means of a gunaccessory. The mounting means includes a longitudinally extending base 4having an internally threaded receiving member 15 at one end forming apart of a handstop assembly and a tubular receiving member 50 at anopposite end forming a receiving member for a sling swivel assembly. Thegun accessory generally designated 52, may be inserted to the rail 3such that either the swivel assembly or the handstop assembly may beforemost. The rail 3 and the base member 4 include suitable means forclamping the accessory 52 in an adjusted longitudinal position. Forexample, as indicated in FIG. 5, the handstop is provided with acombined hand application element mounting and clamping bolt or screw 5which is threaded into the internally threaded receiving member 15 andengaged against the base of the rail 3. The bolt 5 thus permitsanchoring of the accessory 52 in a desired longitudinal position. If thehandstop is only to be used as a sling holding device, then the basepart 4 is oriented as indicated in FIG. 1 with the swivel head assembly,generally designated 7, oriented forwardly.

As best seen in FIG. 3, the swivel head assembly 7 includes a pin 10which is rotatably received within the receiving member 50 and itincludes a forked head with spaced apart leg portions 11,11 which definea receiving recess 12 therebetween which opens preferably at its forwardend. The opening 12 terminates in a recess 13 which is indented in adirection away from the gun barrel 1. A sling swivel member 8 includes acruciform anchor member 14 which may be engaged through the aperture 12and which has lateral pintles 14' on each side which engage onto theassociated leg portions 11 and 11'. The pin 10 includes a hollowintermediate portion with an opening at the outer end which carries aspring loaded ball 15a which presses against the central portion of thecruciform anchor 14 so as to urge it into the receiving recess 13 sothat it cannot be lifted outwardly again without the use of theretracting force.

As indicated in FIG. 4, the sling swivel 8 is advantageously curved andthis curvature is also transmitted in a stretched extension to the sling9 which thereby adapts itself better flexibly to the hand applicationelement 6 as shown in FIG. 1.

In accordance with a further feature of the invention the receivingmember or cylindrical boss 15 of the handstop assembly receives thecombined clamping bolt and mounting member 5 for the hand applicationelement 6. In the embodiment of FIGS. 15, the hand application element 6comprises a hollow cylindrical member which is internally threaded andwhich is threaded over the externally threaded head 16 of the bolt 5. Inthis embodiment the hand application element is secured in juxtapositionby a check washer 18 which is externally threaded and is received in theinternally threaded portion of the hand application element and islocked against the head 16 of the bolt 5. The check washer 18 has a bore19 to accommodate a hexagon socket wrench which may engage into thehexagonal receiving recess 17 of the bolt 16 for the purpose oftightening or loosening the bolt as desired. In FIG. 1 the handapplication element 6 is represented in its outermost position inrespect to the base 4 and the stock 2 of the gun. In FIG. 5 theinnermost position of the hand application element is represented. Ofcourse, any intermediate position between the two end positions is alsopossible.

In the embodiment of the invention shown in FIG. 6, similar parts aresimilarly designated. In this construction the bolt 5' includes a head20 which is not threaded and the hand application member 6' has aninterior smooth bore 26. The hand application element 6' may be slid inrespect to the surface of the head 20 inwardly or outwardly and it maybe fixed in an adjusted position by clamping means similar to the checkwasher 18 of the embodiment of FIG. 5 but which do not requirethreadable locking engagement between the hand application element 6 andthe bolt 5. In this embodiment, the clamping screw head 20 has a hexagonsocket 21 and it carries a plurality of clamping segments 22 locatedwithin a recess 23. The segments 22 define a plurality of radial slots24 uniformly distributed around the periphery of the clamping screw head20. The outer free ends of the clamping segments 20 have a taperedfemale thread and they receive a complimentarily tapered threaded disc25. The disc 25 may be threaded inwardly in order to cause the clampingsegments 20 to be spread radially outwardly by which they are firmlyapplied against the bore 26 of the hand application 6' so as to clamp itfast in a selected position. A central bore 27 in the disc 25 makes itpossible to insert a socket wrench into the hexagon socket 21.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 7, similar parts are similarlydesignated and in this embodiment a clamping bolt 5 includes a head 28with a central threaded portion for receiving a smaller control screw30. The bolt 5" includes a clamping screw head 28 having an externalhexagon 29 for tightening or loosening the bolt. The smaller screw 30may be threaded into the screw head 28 to cause a pressing against a cupspring conical disc 31 to cause its periphery to bear against theinternal bore 26' of the hand application member 6". In the relaxedstate the diameter of the disc 31 is equal to or somewhat less than thediamter of the clamping screw head 28. On the tightening of the screw 30the disc 31 is compressed so that its periphery extends outwardly tofirmly engage against the bore 26 of the hand application element 6".The smaller screw 30 is tightened after the hand application element 6"is fixed in respect to its axial position on the receiving member andthe bolt 5".

While specific embodiments of the invention have been shown anddescribed in detail to illustrate the application of the principles ofthe invention, it will be understood that the invention may be embodiedotherwise without departing from such principles.

What is claimed is:

1. An accessory for a gun having a barrel mounted on a stock, comprisinga handstop assembly, a sling swivel assembly, means for mounting saidhandstop assembly and said sling swivel assembly at longitudinal spacedrelationship in respect to the gun barrel, said handstop assemblyincluding a threaded receiving member, a bolt threadably engaged withsaid receiving member and having a head portion, a hand applicationelement having a tubular part engaged over said bolt head portion andbeing adjustably movable along the axis of said bolt, and clamping meansfor clamping said hand application member in an adjusted position inrespect to the axis of said bolt.

2. A gun accessory, according to claim 1, wherein said mounting meanscomprises a mounting base supporting said handstop assembly and saidsling swivel assembly, said gun stock adapted to have a receiving railon its underside, said mounting base being insertable into saidreceiving rail with one of said sling swivel assembly and said handstopassembly being foremost.

3. A gun accessory, according to claim 2, wherein said mounting meanscomprises a base member, said threaded receiving member forming part ofsaid base member and having an opening extending through said basemember, said bolt being threadable through said receiving member toengage against the gun stock to secure said base in position, said handapplication member being tubular throughout, said bolt having ahexagonal socket for threading said bolt into said receiving memberwhich is accessible through said hand application element.

4. A gun accessory, according to claim 3, wherein said hand applicationmember has a through bore which is internally threaded, said bolt havinga head which is threaded into said through bore, said hand applicationelement being adjustable along said bolt head by threading, and a lockwasher threaded into the bore of said hand application member and beingengageable against the head of a screw bolt for locking said handapplication member in an adjusted position.

5. A gun accessory, according to claim 1, wherein said bolt head has asmooth exterior surface and said hand application member has a smoothbore which is fitted over the smooth exterior surface of said bolt head,said clamping means including a plurality of clamping segments arrangedaround the outer end of said bolt head, said segments defining a taperedthreaded end, and a tapered disc threaded into said threaded endengageable with said segments to spread them into clamping engagementwith said hand application member.

6. A gun accessory, according to claim 1, wherein said hand applicationmember has a bore therethrough, said hand application member beingfitted over said bolt and being in slidable engagement on the head ofsaid bolt, a conical ring disc arranged exteriorly of the head of saidbolt, a ring disc threading screw engaged through said conical ring discand threaded into said bolt head, said screw being threadable to spreadsaid ring disc to clamp it against said hand application memher.

7. An accessory according to claim 1, wherein said swivel assemblyincludes a sling swivel member having a cruciform pintle portion, saidswivel assembly having a receiving member with forked arms having anopen ing therebetween extending forwardly, said cruciform pintle havingparts on each side engaged through the opening and resting in a recessbetween said forked arms, said sling swivel member having an eyeletportion which is curved transversely to the longitudinal axis of saidgun and a sling engaged within said eyelet and being correspondinglycurved by said eyelet.

8. An accessory according to claim 1, wherein said receiving membercomprises a hollow bolt having an opening at its outer end and havingspaced apart hookshaped legs defining a forwardly opening recess, saidsling swivel assembly including a swivel member in the recess of saidlegs, a spring-loadedl ball contained in the hollow portion of saidhollow bo'lt biased against said swivel member and urging said swivelmember into the recess defined by said legs.

1. An accessory for a gun having a barrel mounted on a stock, comprisinga handstop assembly, a sling swivel assembly, means for mounting saidhandstop assembly and said sling swivel assembly at longitudinal spacedrelationship in respect to the gun barrel, said handstop assemblyincluding a threaded receiving member, a bolt threadably engaged withsaid receiving member and having a head portion, a hand applicationelement having a tubular part engaged over said bolt head portion andbeing adjustably movable along the axis of said bolt, and clamping meansfor clamping said hand application member in an adjusted position inrespect to the axis of said bolt.
 2. A gun accessory, according to claim1, wherein said mounting means comprises a mounting base supporting saidhandstop assembly and said sling swivel assembly, said gun stock adaptedto have a receiving rail on its underside, said mounting base beinginsertable into said receiving rail with one of said sling swivelassembly and said handstop assembly being foremost.
 3. A gun accessory,according to claim 2, wherein said mounting means comprises a basemember, said threaded receiving member forming part of said base memberand having an opening extending through said base member, said boltbeing threadable through said receiving member to engage against the gunstock to secure said base in position, said hand application memberbeing tubular throughout, said bolt having a hexagonal socket forthreading said bolt into said receiving member which is accessiblethrough said hand application element.
 4. A gun accessory, according toclaim 3, wherein said hand application member has a through bore whichis internally threaded, said bolt having a head which is threaded intosaid through bore, said hand application element being adjustable alongsaid bolt head by threading, and a lock washer threaded into the bore ofsaid hand application member and being engageable against the head of ascrew bolt for locking said hand application member in an adjustedposition.
 5. A gun accessory, according to claim 1, wherein said bolthead has a smooth exterior surface and said hand application member hasa smooth bore which is fitted over the smooth exterior surface of saidbolt head, said clamping means including a plurality of clampingsegments arranged around the outer end of said bolt head, said segmentsdefining a tapered threaded end, and a tapered disc threaded into saidthreaded end engageable with said segments to spread them into clampingengagement with said hand application member.
 6. A gun accessory,according to claim 1, wherein said hand application member has a boretherethrough, said hand application member being fitted over said boltand being in slidable engagement on the head of said bolt, a conicalring disc arranged exteriorly of the head of said bolt, a ring discthreading screw engaged through said conical ring disc and threaded intosaid bolt head, said screw being threadable to spread said ring disc toclamp it against said hand application member.
 7. An accessory accordingto claim 1, wherein said swivel assembly includes a sling swivel memberhaving a cruciform pintle portion, said swivel assembly having areceiving member with forked arms having an opening therebetweenextending forwardly, said cruciform pintle having parts on each sideengaged through the opening and resting in a recess between said forkedArms, said sling swivel member having an eyelet portion which is curvedtransversely to the longitudinal axis of said gun and a sling engagedwithin said eyelet and being correspondingly curved by said eyelet. 8.An accessory according to claim 1, wherein said receiving membercomprises a hollow bolt having an opening at its outer end and havingspaced apart hook-shaped legs defining a forwardly opening recess, saidsling swivel assembly including a swivel member in the recess of saidlegs, a spring-loaded ball contained in the hollow portion of saidhollow bolt biased against said swivel member and urging said swivelmember into the recess defined by said legs.